Steve Penz's Swingers, Zippers and Wrong'uns'

Coach in CW XI Corner?

by Steve Penz

Too many Coaches spoil the broth. But thats not the case with the famed CW XI side that has been without a coach for its whole existance. And as can be expected, the broth produced has not been terribly good, with the CW XI test match record standing at a dysmal 6 wins, 16 losses and 16 draws. However, this is all about to be rectified, according to an unamed source who informed this journalist of new and exciting revelations within the CWBCC.

Up until now, the CW XI has been exclusively controlled by the CWBCC appointed coach and selectors. However, with the possible addition of a coach, in what ways can CW XI be improved as a team? Certainly technical analysis and tactical advice can be provided by the coach, yet to what end? Will the players perform better under a man who would play a significant role in their cricketing careers, or, there could quite possibly be resentment and disrespect shown by some of the stalwarts of the CW XI. Certainly no one would disagree that the CW XI have some of the the more 'outspoken' international players in the world, including captain Brendon Goff, leading batsmen Marc Robins, and, in every sense of the word, fiery leg-spinner, Neil Pickup. How would these players, who are used to preparing themselves indivudually as players, react in an environment where they are recieving criticism from someone in a position of power.

This jounalist believes that such a decision can only lead to disaster for the CW XI. Surely the clash of personalities within the team heirachy can only lead to poor performances on the field, leading to more controversies of it. If that is the case, what can a Coach do to 'tame' his herd? Would he be a hard diciplinarian, laps for dropped catches, push-ups for outs in the nets, sit ups for wides bowled? Or would he be 'new age', with regular discussions, motivatonal sessons, and tai-chi? Either way is perilous for the reputaion of any man making a career as one the coach of one of the most famed sides in the world.

Which leads to the question, who will that man be? One name that comes to mind is former CW XI player Guy Kerridge. Kerridge had a mildly sucessful Test and One Day career and certainly knows whats its like to be on th efront line for the CW XI. Perhaps Kerridge is the man who can command respect and form a united fron that can begin to lead in world cricket standards. Another name flying around in the exalted circles that yours truly interacts in is leading cricket observer Richard Dickson. However surely if the CWBCC was to consider such a man for an important position, then I'm afraid there cannot be much hope for the CW XI. A man with no experience in FC cricket in such an important role would be unsuitable to say the least. A man that would struggle to command respect from his troops would surely have no chance in improving the quality of the CW XI.

However, time will surely tell if such a relevation will come about.

Last edited by KennyD; 10-12-2004 at 10:12 AM.

Originally Posted by SupaFreak2005

Well Simon and Xavier hit on all the females but the ladies all want Kenny :naughty:

Why does everyone get it wrong? It's John Sanders. Eddie is the comic book character...

Eddie is his nickname here though. Sort of like the baseball player Chipper Jones. He's listed in the records as Chipper, but his name is Larry.

Sreesanth said, "Next ball he was beaten and I said, 'is this the King Charles Lara? Who is this impostor, moving around nervously? I should have kept my mouth shut for the next ball - mind you, it was a length ball - Lara just pulled it over the church beyond the boundary! He is a true legend."

Two matches of Titanic proportions, two wins to the so-called underdogs. CW A players can toot their horns vigorously after wrapping up a series win against the front line CW XI side last night at the PVD dome. The CW XI's non ability to build a large score was once again backed up by their bowlers and fielders unable to sustain pressure of any sort against the cool, collected CW A batsmen.

After the CW XI's horrible middle order collapse in game 1 where they lost their last 6 wickets in 34 balls for 28 runs, their game 2 batting performance showed some signs of improvement with a resilant 69 to Markus and starts from others. Yet that was all they were starts, and agin the tail was left to do too much to late, despite a spirited 36* from late allrounder Camps. Law Hoy and Rose pushed their chances for first team selection with 3 scalps apiece.

However CW XI's problems dont end with there batting, problems with their bowlings again reared their ugly head. In game 1, CW XI had the A's reeling at 3/17 in the 4th over thanks to a blistering opening 2 overs from Timewell. Yet with the blade poised to fall on the exposed CW A middle order, CW XI relaxed, released the stranglehold they had and bowled loose. Ghanser and Moon cashed in and shared 14 boundaries between them as they sped the A's to victory in the 33rd over. Come game 2, and with 235 runs to play with, many expected a much improved from the so called no. 1 bowling line-up in CW Land. After Broadbent removed Towns with his 2nd ball to give the unfortunate A's vice captain another duck, the CW XI could be excused if they were feeling slightly more reassured after game 1. Yet mature batting from Walsh and Feeny then Moon saw the A team run away with an easy victory, crossing the line with 5.2 overs to spare. The CW XI bowling wasnt poor as such, instead merely unthoughtful. Only ten boundaries were scored by the A team as they milked the CW XI bowlers by working into the gaps and running intelligently. THis tactic was applied affectively against the spin of Pickup, who found himself unable to conjure anything out of his bag of tricks to break the strong partnerships the A team had formed.

There are many critics of national sides playing their A sides, some say it creates too much rivalry to play against teammates, especially when spots in the top team is on the line. Perhaps some of the CW XI players need to realise this in time for game 3, as selectors will surely take the form of all players into account for the coming VB series in Australia.